The rain buzzed like bees as it fell on the road, riddled with stone tiles, some broken, some not so much. The slums were never silent when it rained though. It wasn't just the need to make coin even in bad weather. Some residents of Hestis just didn't have roofs to come home to. Such was the case with Lilla. Her white robe was soaking as she was hiding under a spread-out chunk of leather - she would use this piece to cover herself during the colder months, but today it's purpose was set on protecting her shivering body from the rain, maybe even collecting naturally purified water. Where was that brat anyway? He knew it was trouble playing outside during such times. The young maiden sniffled, before blowing her nose on a handkerchief, silently cursing under her nose. She wouldn't be worried for long. The sound of a child's bare feet, splashing and slapping on the wet tiles outside, came rushing in closer and closer, until the sillhouette of a little kid stood at the doorframe.

"Mommy, I'm homee!" And there he was. His wet hair's lenght had reached all the way down to his neck as his blue eyes shone with excitement. Something was up. Perhaps he was hiding it there, behind his back. Luckily, his little coat would have been able to preserve his little body from the cold, though, to a kid, it was all child's play... Even death.

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"What have you got there?" Lilla asked, raising an eyebrow, before a Hestian apple was placed in her hands. It had an orange tint to it's outside, compared to the other apples of the land. In addition to that, the inside was juicy and sweet like nectar. Not everyone could afford such a treat.

The woman smiled warmly at the gift and gave his son a warm hug. "You're such a good thief, Adlem. But we're sharing that one." It surely wasn't prideful for a mother to so nicely congratulate her son for stealing, but in a world so harsh, survival was more important than proper behavior. After all, what future was there in the slums? The two were locked in a hug for a bit, shared the apple and then the storm quieted down, cleaning the way for a quieter night. This was one of the last and nicest memory of Adlem, before Lilla's passing. Soon, he would prove to be one of the greatest thieves that the world of Vaff had witnessed.